Pharmaceutical items (for example, drugs, diluents, medical and surgical supplies, gauze, scissors, needles, labels, baggies, bandages, packaging, vial, syringes, and/or other items that the pharmacy is responsible for), such as medications (for example, drugs, diluents, etc., in solid or liquid form), that have left a pharmacy of a medical care facility are to be managed closely to conform to regulatory guidelines regarding use and waste, to avoid misadministration and diversion, and to ensure appropriate inventory management and patient billing. In this context, medical care providers administer medications received from the pharmacy or removed from a crash cart or other pharmaceutical item storage unit. In some cases, prior to, or as part of, administration, the medical care providers transfer one or more medications from one medicinal container (for example, a vial, syringe, etc.) to another medicinal container and/or combine multiple medications into one medicinal container. As part of the transfer, the medical care provider prepares a handwritten label for the new medicinal container or new combination of medications in order to identify and track it throughout its lifecycle within the medical care facility. In addition, the medical care provider is responsible for returning unused medications (including any medications in the new medicinal container) from the original set of assigned pharmaceutical items, or reporting the administration, use, or waste of the medications, to the pharmacy for inventory management, billing, and regulatory control.